News & Notes: Sakha ’18 elected as Editor-in-Chief with 75 percent turnout

After a four-way contested election, the Daily Princetonian elected Associate Opinion Editor Sarah Sakha ’18 as the Editor-in-Chief for the 141st Board.

Candidates Chief Copy Editor and Senior News Writer Maya Wesby ’18, Associate Opinion Editor Newby Parton ’18, Head News Editor Jessica Li ’18, and Sakha vied for the role.

Elections formally began at 10 a.m. with candidates' speeches, immediately followed by a question-and-answer period for each candidate. Wesby was first, followed by Sakha, then Parton and Li. This the was the same order in which voters discussed the strengths and weaknesses of each of the candidates during afternoon discussions.

During a rules debate period beginning at 1 p.m., voters decided to change election rules. An amendment for a simple majority to win when only two candidates were left, instead of a two-thirds majority, was passed by more than two-thirds of the voters present.

Before discussing the candidates, voters debated topics including the role of the Editor-in-Chief at the ‘Prince’ and the qualities of an ideal Editor-in-Chief. Voting began at 4:15 p.m.

While the election results were close, an immediate recount did not change the results of the election. Overall, there were five rounds of voting, with a turnout of 75 percent in the final round of elections.

Eligible voters are current members of the staff who have worked for the ‘Prince’ for a semester or more. Seniors are not allowed to vote. Attendance to the election is limited to members of the current managing board, current staff members, and candidates.